Journalists Are Not on Your Payroll: Crypto Media Relations

Crypto journalists work for their publications and their readers, not for your project. They owe you nothing, they receive more pitches than they can open, and they cover what is news on their beat. You earn coverage by being useful to them over time: relevant pitches, fast answers, honest information and a relationship that outlasts one announcement.

Who do crypto journalists actually work for?

I have been repeating one sentence since 2022.

While doing a PR activity, companies usually forget that the journalists are on the payrolls of the media, not theirs. Shilika Jain on X, 11 Aug 2022

A reporter's job is to inform readers and to meet an editor's standard for what counts as news. Your roadmap is not part of that job. A year later I put it more sharply: expecting journalists to keep pushing your promotional news is not PR, it is shilling.

This is where most founder frustration starts. Every launch feels important inside the company. To the media, a launch without high impact attached to it is promotional. Before you pitch, ask what changes for anyone outside your team because of this news. If the answer is nothing, it belongs on your blog.

How do I get a journalist's attention in the first place?

It is hard, and I say that as someone who does it for a living. Journalists get a huge number of pitches every day, sometimes more than an average investor gets. In November 2023 I shared what works.

It's better to get a warm intro from mutuals. In case if that's not an option, try researching more about the journo's beat and interest areas. A personalised, non-shilly, humble cold outreach message can take you a long way. Don't spam their inboxes with vague msgs. Shilika Jain on X, 10 Nov 2023

What each part means in practice:

• Warm intro first. A note from someone the reporter already trusts gets opened.
• Cold outreach is fine when it is specific. Reference what they cover. Say in two or three lines what the news is and why their readers would care. Keep the tone humble.
• Do not send vague messages. "Would love to connect about our project" gives them nothing to act on and trains them to ignore your name.

My crypto media relations guide goes deeper on pitch structure.

How do I know which journalist to pitch?

By knowing their beat. A reporter who covers funding rounds is not the person for your governance proposal, and the one who writes about regulation does not want your partnership news.

What reporters want also shifts with the news cycle. After Token2049 in September 2024, my main note was that journalists there were most keen on regulatory conversations. A founder who showed up with a clear view on regulation had an easier time than one with a product demo.

Beat knowledge comes from reading, every day, for years.

My biggest flex is that when i see a launch announcement i can exactly tell you which publications + reporters would cover that first. Shilika Jain on X, 29 Sep 2026

You can build a working version yourself: read the outlets you want to be in and keep a simple list of who writes about companies like yours. Outlets differ as much as reporters do, which I cover in CoinDesk vs Cointelegraph: where to pitch and how to pitch Cointelegraph.

How should I follow up, and what if a reporter ghosts me?

Follow-ups are part of the job, not an optional extra. In April 2023 I described what PR involves, as opposed to what most projects think it is.

Most projects think that PR is asking a media to publish an article about their company. What it actually is - creating a storyline, working on the messaging and narrative, pitching to targeted journalists, reaching out to them with well-curated pitches, following up and more! Shilika Jain on X, 13 Apr 2023

Silence is normal. Being in PR gets you used to rejections and ghosting, and I have openly asked my own network what PR people are supposed to do when a reporter goes quiet after saying yes. There is no trick. What I would do:

• Follow up once or twice with something new: a fresh data point, a confirmed date, an available spokesperson. "Just bumping this" adds nothing.
• Do not take it personally. A bigger story may have landed on their desk, or an editor may have cut the piece.
• If a confirmed story stalls, tell the reporter politely that you plan to take it elsewhere, then do that. Keep the door open for next time.

What should I do when a publication only wants an exclusive?

I have asked this question publicly too, because it is a real tension: one outlet wants the news alone, and you want reach.

My view is that an exclusive is a trade. You give one reporter the story first, and in return you get more of their attention and usually a more considered piece. For news with real weight, that trade is often worth making. In January 2024 I helped break Root Labs' funding news, $10 million across two seed rounds, as a CoinDesk exclusive.

Two rules keep exclusives from damaging relationships:

1. Offer it to one reporter at a time, with a clear deadline for a yes or no.
2. Never promise the same exclusive to two outlets. Reporters talk to each other, and you will not be trusted again.

What happens when a journalist comes to you with questions?

Answer them.

Responding and answering journalists' query is PR 101! Shilika Jain on X, 25 Oct 2023

This applies most when the questions are uncomfortable. If an investigative journalist reaches out several times with specific questions, it makes sense to answer sooner rather than later. The story will run either way, and silence means it runs without your side. My crypto crisis communications playbook covers how to prepare for that moment.

Size does not protect you from getting this wrong. I used to assume big chains and projects had solid comms teams. Working with more of these ecosystems, I have seen delayed responses, missed deadlines, poor collaboration and teams being too picky about which journalists they will speak to. Reporters remember who was easy to work with and who was not.

How do I build relationships that last beyond one story?

Stop treating coverage as the goal and treat the relationship as the goal.

Lot of PR folks are only focused on driving coverage, only a handful focus on building genuine media relationships Shilika Jain on X, 25 Jun 2026

Expecting instant results from PR is illogical. It works when you take a long-term approach.

PR works when you have a long term approach, work on building relationships, carving out the brand, sharing your story, ongoing convos with journos. PR is not magic! Shilika Jain on X, 26 Jul 2023

In practice, ongoing conversations mean being useful when you have nothing to announce: a quick comment on a market event, data a reporter can use, and straight answers when the news is bad.

One more thing to consider when choosing who represents you. In December 2022 I pointed out that large mainstream PR agencies are often at maximum capacity, with many clients competing for the attention of the same journalists. A boutique agency or an independent consultant can give your story more of that attention. I compare the models in fractional vs agency.

## Posts this piece is built on - 11 Aug 2022: While doing a PR activity, companies usually forget - 20 Sep 2023: the journos are not on the project's payroll - 11 Oct 2024: every other launch is important to the company - 10 Nov 2023: journalists get tons of pitches everyday - 10 Nov 2023: It's better to get a warm intro from mutuals - 7 Jan 2025: for those who think PR is easy - 24 Sep 2024: some thoughts on Token2049 - 29 Sep 2026: my biggest flex is that when i see a launch announcement - 13 Apr 2023: most projects think that PR is asking a media - 17 Aug 2023: being in PR just makes you used to rejections - 4 Oct 2024: what are PR folks supposed to do if reporters ghost - 25 Oct 2023: what should PR managers do when publications only want exclusives? - 19 Jan 2024: glad to help break this story - 25 Oct 2023: responding and answering journalists' query is PR 101 - 25 Nov 2025: if an investigative journalist is reaching out to you multiple times - 10 Nov 2025: I always used to think that big chains/projects have solid comms team - 25 Jun 2026: lot of PR folks are only focused on driving coverage - 26 Jul 2023: instant gratification expectations with PR - 16 Dec 2022: Funded web3 projects run behind mainstream PR agencies

Have news coming up and no idea which reporters would care? Tell me what you are announcing and I will map the beats and the outreach order with you.